CLINTON, Iowa — Clinton LumberKings General Manager Ted Tornow doesn't know if this year will be his team's last or not.
Tornow has been the team's GM for 22 years, but he's known about this possibility since late 2019.
"I guess Burlington and us, and in the first initial list, I guess the Quad Cities and several other teams were on there, but as Major League Baseball has even said, the list continues to be a fluid process."
Major League Baseball is looking to overhaul the system, and because each big league ball club employs the players in the minors, not the teams themselves, there's no game in Clinton without the big league team's consent.
"The total payroll that the Miami Marlins spend in Clinton, Iowa, these players are underpaid," Tornow said. "They're paid $1,250 a month, hence the uproar in the nation for these players that are getting underpaid. They're not even getting minimum wage."
Tornow says MLB and the owner of the Marlins aren't talking. He says NelsonCorp Field would be an escape for people right now, especially during this tough economic time.
"To take that away, I think Major League Baseball is very very short sighted," he said. "I guess they'd be idiots to do it, but I guess we'll find out if they prove us wright or wrong."
A spokesperson for MLB says the league's focused on the safety of its players and fans right now for the upcoming season. According to Iowa U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley, the Quad Cities River Bandits are safe from any sort of contraction.